Israel Justified In Policy To Retaliate On Terrorists

WHEN THE Continental Navy wanted to send a message to its enemies in 1775, it picked a flag with a rattlesnake and the words, ``Don`t tread on me.``

That`s a perfect way to describe Israel`s warning to terrorists: Hit us and we will always hit back much harder.

As a tiny country surrounded by well-armed, hostile enemies, Israel has been forced to adopt such a tough policy - and repeatedly enforce it with military power - in an effort to deter aggression and insure the lives of its people and its own survival as a nation.

Unlike the United States government, which speaks loudly and carries no stick at all when dealing with terrorists, Israel has taken a firm, unflinching position of severe retaliation whenever its people or its interests are attacked.

That policy has not been completely successful, and often causes trouble for Israel and its most important ally, the United States.

Also, violence always seems to beget more violence in the Mideast. Nevertheless, Israel has little choice but to bite fiercely when stepped on.

In the latest exercise of this policy, six American-made Israeli jets bombed and strafed the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization in Tunisia to avenge what Israel claims was a PLO terrorist raid on a yacht in Cyprus harbor on Yom Kippur that killed three Israeli tourists.

Although PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat escaped injury, his home and offices were destroyed and perhaps 60 people were killed and 100 injured in the air raid.

Critics may condemn the Israeli raid as an unjustified overreaction that may have killed or injured a number of innocent people, a violation of another nation`s sovereign territory, and a warlike act certain to provoke further aggression.

But Israel is only playing the game according to rules set down by its enemies, and if those rules backfire on people who threaten Israel`s survival, they have only themselves to blame.

It`s regrettable that innocent civilians may die in such an attack, but countries like Tunisia that harbor terrorists must be made aware that they run that risk.

It`s hard to argue with the State Department official who called the Israeli raid ``legitimate self-defense.``

The United States has talked about bombing terrorist bases, but has never done so, partly out of concern for world opinion.

But Israel, which has unique problems not faced by the United States, understands that if it weighs world opinion too heavily, it probably won`t be around very long.